~Peeta~

I am awakened to a loud sound. I jump. I get out of bed throwing the blankets off of me. I slowly make my way to my bedroom door, rubbing my eyes. I open the door and walk down the upstairs hallway and walk down the stairs.

The knocking continues. I'm about halfway down the staircase when I hear a voice. Katniss's voice, calling for me. "Peeta! It's Katniss." I freeze. I can't let her inside. I just can't see her right now. She's persistent with her knocking.

I almost want to answer the door just to make it stop. I plop down on the steps and put my hands in my lap. I stare down at them. I almost consider going back up the stairs, but it wouldn't do much good. I could still hear her from upstairs. I'll just wait until she gives up and goes home.

But he doesn't give up. I see that she is sitting outside the door because I can see her shadow under the door. She knocks for about an hour and then her knocking becomes more weak and labored. Then it stops all together. She must have fallen asleep.

I almost consider going back upstairs. But…I can't just leave her out there. No. I tell myself. You promised you'd stay away from her until you can control your flashbacks.

I argue with myself for several minutes before deciding to get up and take her home. Just as I stand up a sharp pain goes through my head and another fabricated memory surfaces and I fall back onto the stairs.

Running. Running. Running through an underground tunnel. Finnick close behind me with a few others. Katniss just a few yards ahead of me.

Then I hear a blood curdling shriek. I turn around expecting to see a fallen soldier, but find that there are Muttations following close behind us. I sprint ahead of the others and I watch them struggling to keep up. The Muttations are gaining on us.

Then I see a light at the end of the tunnel. And then I see an old rusty steel ladder leading up out of the ground. I climb the ladder and peer down into the dark tunnel looking out for the others. Finnick is the next person climbing the ladder.

Then Katniss pulls him down from the ladder and pushes him to the Muttations who have caught up with them. She climbs up the ladder with a cold laugh.

"Finnick!" I yell. And I watch as he is ripped apart by the sinister creatures. "No…" I whisper. And turn around; hatred fills my eyes as I turn to Katniss who is still laughing. How could she have done this?

She Killed Finnick.

FINNICK IS DEAD BECAUSE OF KATNISS!

No. No. It's not real. It's all a lie. Finnick gave up his life to save us. So that we could live and finish our mission.

KATNISS IS A MURDERER! SHE MURDERED YOUR FRIENDS, YOUR FAMILY. EVERYTHING THAT YOU EVER LOVED!

No. That isn't true. It's not real. It's not real. I…I love Katniss. I always have and I always will. I keep telling myself this over and over until the pain goes away and my mind relaxes.

Finally it's over. For now anyway.

I stand up. A little too fast because I feel lightheaded and have to steady myself by grabbing hold of the railing of the stairs. I slowly go down the stairs.

I wonder how long this flashback lasted. I wish I had gotten a glimpse of the time beforehand. This one seemed to last forever.

I make my way to the front door and open it slowly in an attempt to see if Katniss is still there. I expect to find that she's gone home. But as I open the door further I see she's fallen asleep against the door. The door had been propping her up and she began to fall. I catch her quickly.

She's still asleep. She must be extremely exhausted. I gently lift her up and carry her to her house. It doesn't seem like I will be having another flashback for a while, so she should be safe for the time being. I open the front door and take her upstairs.

I lay her down on the edge of the bed and pull down the covers. I lift her again and tuck her under the blankets. I lean down and gently kiss her forehead. Luck for me she's asleep and chances are she won't even know I've done this. She stirs slightly and I freeze, thinking she'll awaken. But she remains asleep and I quietly leave the room.

Hopefully she won't suffer any nightmares tonight.

I walk back to my house and climb back in bed. Maybe I'll get more sleep this time. I close my eyes and drift into a deep sleep.

I'm awakened by the sound of screaming. I sit up, startled. I listen closely to identify the source of the scream. Then I hear it again.

Certainly Haymitch's voice is not nearly that high, and he's usually drunk and passed out for most of his days. Then I realize that it can only be one person, Katniss.

I want to run to her.

To awaken her and tell her that everything is going to be alright and it was all just a dream. But…I can't. I just can't. It hurts so badly to listen to her scream in agony, in terror. But there's nothing I can do. I have to stay away from her if she is to be safe. I can snap at any moment. And I can't have that.

For the rest of the night I cover my ears with my pillow trying to drown out her crys of horror.

A/N: Yes! Finally. A longer chapter. This is my last update for tonight. Hope you enjoy.

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